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University of Washington School of Medicine
Online News
Vol. 12, No. 32
August 8, 2008
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To view an archived version of Online News on the UW
Medicine Web site, visit:
http://www.uwmedicine.org/Global/NewsAndEvents/somnews/index.htm
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This week’s news:
* UW medical student and pole-vaulter Leila Ben-Youssef representing Tunisia in 2008 Olympics in Beijing
* Greg Horwitz in the Department of Physiology and Biophysics receives McKnight Scholar Award in support of neuroscience research
* Four UW scientists among new Life Sciences Discovery Fund grantees
* Alfred Berg honored by Society of Teachers of Family Medicine
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UW MEDICAL STUDENT LEILA BEN-YOUSSEF COMPETING IN 2008 OLYMPICS
Leila Ben-Youssef, a first-year medical student at the UW, is competing later this month in the pole vaulting competition at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. A dual citizen of the United States and Tunisia, Ben-Youssef will represent Tunisia, her father's home country.
Ben-Youssef, 26, was introduced to pole vaulting in middle school in rural Sidney, Mont., where she lived with her father, who was an orthopedic surgeon, as well as her mother and two siblings. Ben-Youssef excelled at her sport and academics throughout her years at Sidney High School, where she competed and won the state championship in the event three times, setting a personal record of 12 feet, 7.5 inches. It was during high school that she set her sights on the Olympics.
That outstanding effort in high school helped Ben-Youssef build a well-rounded and impressive portfolio. She was recruited to attend Stanford University, where she continued to compete in pole vaulting and became a scholar, graduating with an undergraduate degree in human biology in 2004 and a master's degree in medical anthropology in 2005. Since graduating from college, Ben-Youssef has worked as a course associate in human biology at Stanford and has continued her sport, competing for the Tunisian National Team.
Within the past year, she tied and then surpassed the Tunisian record by clearing a personal best of 14 feet, 1.25 inches in June. She also won gold medals at the Pan-African and Pan-Arab games, in Algeria and Egypt, respectively. This year, while competing and winning a gold medal at the African championships in Ethiopia, she took time to visit some women's clinics to explore her interest in international, rural, and women's health.
Her goal for the Olympics is to make the finals. To achieve that, the athlete adheres to a rigorous training program, working out six days a week. Her routine includes short sprints, pole vaulting, gymnastics, and power-building exercises known as plyometrics.
On Aug. 16, Ben-Youssef will compete for a place in the Olympic pole-vaulting finals. Depending on the results, she may compete in the finals on Aug. 18.
After the Olympics, Ben-Youssef will return to the UW School of Medicine's WWAMI medical education program at Montana State University in Bozeman.
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GREG HORWITZ RECEIVES MCKNIGHT SCHOLAR AWARD IN NEUROSCIENCE
Greg Horwitz, assistant professor of physiology and biophysics and core staff member of the Washington National Primate Research Center, has been named a recipient of the 2008 McKnight Scholar Award in Neuroscience. The awards are granted to scientists in the early stages of their independent careers, and are intended to support innovative research in the neurosciences. The McKnight Scholar Award is given to several scientists each year, and includes $75,000 of support per year for three years.
The award will support Horwitz in his research on the neural basis of color vision. He uses a combination of electrophysiological, psychophysical, and computational approaches to understand how visual pathways in the brain interact to enhance color perception.
Horwitz joined the UW in 2007, following postdoctoral research at the Salk Institute. He completed his undergraduate training in computational neuroscience at Harvard, and earned a doctoral degree in neuroscience from Stanford University. Horwitz is the sixth member of the UW Department of Physiology and Biophysics to be named a McKnight Scholar.
The awards are administered by the McKnight Endowment Fund for Neuroscience, which is affiliated with the philanthropic organization the McKnight Foundation.
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UW SCIENTISTS RECEIVE GRANTS FROM LIFE SCIENCES DISCOVERY FUND
The Washington Life Sciences Discovery Fund this week announced a round of six new grants, including four for University of Washington projects. The grants represent $5 million in support for health-related research.
The grant awardees are Eberhard Fetz, Cecilia Giachelli, Pierre Mourad, and Patrick Stayton, all at the UW, and Clifford Berkman and Diane Cook at Washington State University.
Fetz, professor of physiology and biophysics and associate director for neuroscience at the Washington National Primate Research Center, received a $1 million grant to support his research on brain-computer interfaces. This project will focus on a brain-computer interface that would aid in functional recovery from a brain injury due to stroke, trauma, or epilepsy.
Giachelli, professor of bioengineering, received a $1.5 million grant to study cell therapies to prevent or reverse tissue calcification. Soft-tissue calcification occurs in many diseases and injuries, and can be especially problematic for joints, valves, blood vessels, and muscles. Giachelli's project is aimed at prolonging the life of biological prosthetic devices like heart valves, and at developing a way to deter calcification associated with injuries and burns.
Mourad, principal physicist at the Applied Physics Laboratory and research associate professor of neurological surgery, received a $225,000 grant to study the use of ultrasound technology to localize deep-tissue pain. Mourad and his colleagues will test the effectiveness of an ultrasound instrument called a transcutaneous acoustic palpation device in finding the source of deep-tissue pain.
Stayton, professor of bioengineering, received a grant of $972,000 to study diagnostic screening cards. He and his colleagues are working to develop a low-cost, self-powered screening card that can detect infectious agents in blood. If effective, such a screening tool could provide for better, more cost-effective diagnostic services at point-of-care sites.
The Life Sciences Discovery Fund was established in 2005 to support biomedical research that promotes life-sciences competitiveness, enhances economic vitality, and improves health and medical care. Its operating expenses and grants are primarily supported by a settlement the state received following a large, multi-state lawsuit against tobacco companies.
For more information on the projects, and the Life Sciences Discovery Fund itself, visit the fund's Web site at:
http://www.lsdfa.org/
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BERG HONORED BY SOCIETY OF TEACHERS OF FAMILY MEDICINE
Alfred O. Berg, professor of family medicine, has received the F. Marian Bishop Award from the Society of Teachers of Family Medicine. The award is named after Bishop, a woman recognized as one of the founders of family medicine. It honors people who have significantly enhanced the academic credibility of family medicine by a sustained and long-term commitment to family medicine in academic settings.
Berg was chair of the Department of Family Medicine from 1998 to 2007. He was elected to the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences in 1996. Berg has served on many national expert panels using evidence-based methods to develop clinical guidelines, including chairmanship of the United States Preventive Services Task Force. He is recognized as a national leader in family practice medicine and preventive care. He currently chairs a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention panel on genetic testing.
Berg earned his medical degree from Washington University in St. Louis, and completed a master's in public health and residency in preventive medicine at the UW School of Public Health and Community Medicine. He completed his residency in family medicine at the University of Missouri Medical Center in Columbia, Mo., and was a fellow in the Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholars Program at the UW. He joined the UW faculty in 1977 as a clinical instructor of family medicine, and has been a full professor since 1991.
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Justin Reedy, editor:
206-685-0382, jreedy@u.washington.edu
Online News is copyright 2008. All rights, including electronic
redistribution, are reserved.
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